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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Original poster

New kittens

22 replies

Nahhh · 02/05/2021 16:49

I’ve finally had the call from the rescue centre that they have two confident little kittens ready to join my family.

What do I need to get in to get ready for them?

One of the kittens is huge (they’re siblings) so much so that the rescue think dad may be a Maine Coone or similar. The other is regular sized!

OP posts:
Chemenger · 02/05/2021 17:05

You need food and water bowls (I would say a food bowl each and a shared water bowl). Get metal, ceramic or glass - plastic sometimes gives them spots on their chins. Put the water bowl away from the food, ours is on the other side of the room. I would say get two litter trays too, at least at first, they may share. Get covered ones, it reduces the mess when they do wheelspins to get out of the tray, spin round in the tray just for fun or do overenthusiastic digging. Then you will have to buy every toy in Pets at Home, but they will actually play with a hair bobble and a knotted crisp packet. The only exception is Da Bird, an iconic feather on a string toy which they will chase until you fear they might die of heart attacks. A comb and a brush are a good idea, I find they like the wire slicker types which they will rub their faces on in ecstasy. You will worry that they will damage their eyes, they will not. You can buy kitten beds, but you know they will be sleeping on yours or on piles of clean washing. You will need at least one cat carrier, get one that opens at the top.

Original poster
Nahhh · 02/05/2021 17:39

Grin thank you for your lovely advice! I’ve said no cats on beds but my daughters have already strongly objected to my plan!

OP posts:
Chemenger · 02/05/2021 17:44

When we last got kittens of our own my DDs insisted on sleeping with them. They soon discovered that little kittens are unbelievably annoying when you are trying to sleep. Since then we have fostered a couple of pairs of kittens, they were put to bed in their own room overnight for our sanity. A blanket in a box or in the corner of a sofa is fine.

Chemenger · 02/05/2021 17:47

And you will need a laser pointer. When playing with them don't let them use your hands as toys, their claws are like needles and you don't want them still attacking your hands when they are grown up. With a pair they will fight with each other so it isn't so much of a problem.

Fluffycloudland77 · 02/05/2021 17:51

Yeah my dh said no cats on bed too 🤣. He’s also an optimist.

Original poster
Nahhh · 02/05/2021 17:56

I last had kittens when I was 11. They drove me mad at nighttime!

Good tip re your hands.

OP posts:
littlebillie · 02/05/2021 18:11

Pictures please Grin

lljkk · 02/05/2021 18:13

only here for the pics

Yosami · 02/05/2021 18:13

Haha @ no cats on beds !

Bowls.
Litter trays, liners and litter.
Food
Toys
Poop scooper
Carrier
Vet
Insurance

We will need pictures Grin

Arbadacarba · 02/05/2021 18:20

I’ve said no cats on beds

Oh, how touchingly naive you are, OP Grin

Not much to add to the above. Find out what food they are on and stock up on the same kind. You can change their food in time if you want, but you should feed them what they're used to for the first few weeks and then change by mixing the two and gradually increasing the proportion of the new brand.

I would also buy a spot carpet cleaner in case of any little accidents.

lljkk · 02/05/2021 18:23

What is the theory behind "No pets on beds".

Avoiding mud from paws near faces? Is that the idea?

I can't think of any way that pets on beds leads to contact that won't happen in every other way we interact with cats & dogs, anyway.

"No litter trays on beds" would make sense.

Chemenger · 02/05/2021 18:31

Once they are big enough to actually sleep I have no problem with cats on beds. Kittens run over your face, chew your hair and attack your feet all night.

SakuraEdenSwan1 · 02/05/2021 18:38

@Chemenger

You need food and water bowls (I would say a food bowl each and a shared water bowl). Get metal, ceramic or glass - plastic sometimes gives them spots on their chins. Put the water bowl away from the food, ours is on the other side of the room. I would say get two litter trays too, at least at first, they may share. Get covered ones, it reduces the mess when they do wheelspins to get out of the tray, spin round in the tray just for fun or do overenthusiastic digging. Then you will have to buy every toy in Pets at Home, but they will actually play with a hair bobble and a knotted crisp packet. The only exception is Da Bird, an iconic feather on a string toy which they will chase until you fear they might die of heart attacks. A comb and a brush are a good idea, I find they like the wire slicker types which they will rub their faces on in ecstasy. You will worry that they will damage their eyes, they will not. You can buy kitten beds, but you know they will be sleeping on yours or on piles of clean washing. You will need at least one cat carrier, get one that opens at the top.
Haha spot on !Grin
MintyCedric · 02/05/2021 18:46

Congratulations on your new arrivals!

I have two sisters...one tiny with Bengal genes, one a mahoosive fluff bucket who we think must have some Maine Coone going on.

I'd add a scratching post/tree of some variety.

Also if you've not had cats since you were a kid (I hadn't either) do not underestimate the amount of havoc and breakages they will cause...worth it but it was a bit of a shocker tbh!

New kittens
Shmithecat2 · 02/05/2021 18:49

Scratch post/tall cat tree. Not sure how old your children are, but the kittens will need somewhere to retreat to for quiet time without small people annoying them.

Fluffycloudland77 · 02/05/2021 19:15

@lljkk

What is the theory behind "No pets on beds".

Avoiding mud from paws near faces? Is that the idea?

I can't think of any way that pets on beds leads to contact that won't happen in every other way we interact with cats & dogs, anyway.

"No litter trays on beds" would make sense.

It’s the illusion you won’t be completely manipulated by an animal with a brain the size of a walnut.
littlebillie · 02/05/2021 22:00

Gorgeous furries

Sociallydistancedcocktails · 02/05/2021 22:03

Congratulations! We don’t allow cats on our bed at night, although the old dog does sneak up.

Our cats purr too much and it keeps us up 😃

Umbongoumbongo999 · 02/05/2021 22:12

Sign up to Pets at Home kitten club. You can sign up for both kittens and will get 2x20% discounts, plus freebies. This helps with the expensive first shop.

Get first vaccines, worm, flea, health checks booked in asap (if not already done at rescue centre). Vets are still really busy as they manage their capacity for social distancing.

Get a small water pistol to shoot them when they start to climb your curtains.

Get them used to being handled all over. They may/may not like this but is important you can check them for injuries etc when they inevitably tumble down the stairs.

Be prepared for them to be very timid and a bit unlikeable at first. They will need plenty of time to settle in. Our kittens are 12 weeks now and we kept them to one room for the first week or so, letting them out into another room for an hour or so at a time. Now they are pretty much free range, but I have a complex magic act to open and close various doors to keep my old cat separated, as she is Not A Fan.

Definitely get a cat tree with scratching posts
My cats also like those compressed cardboard scratch boards. YES to feathers.

Chemenger · 03/05/2021 07:08

With scratching posts they are more likely to use it if they can really stretch so get the tallest one you can find. The little kitten ones are pointless.

imnotprincessbubblegum · 06/05/2021 12:58

What we got for ours (we've had for three weeks now):
Food bowls
Couple of litter boxes (upstairs and downstairs)
Litter
some nappy bags/poo bags for soiled litter
2 scratch posts (one huge and one small and basic) for upstairs and downstairs
Toys, mainly fluffy or jjngley balls to chase
Insurance
We found it really tricky to get an appointment at the vets so make sure your local/chosen one has availability (may not be the case where you are though). Vets will give you anti flea worming stuff. Be sure to ask if they do a kitten package
Carrier

We set our kitten up in one room, (so in our case DDs room and kittens carrier with thick blankets was her bed initially, now she sleeps on DDs bed) and then after a few days opened the bedroom door ever so slightly so she could explore but still had a quiet and safe space.

Aaaand most important...a camera/camera phone for all the photos you'll be taking!

Beamur · 06/05/2021 13:05

How exciting.
Kittens get bored quickly. I had a box with a variety of bits of fabric, rustly tunnels, toys, boxes, etc and created a new play area every day. Usually at night to keep them amused!
I kept mine shut in one room overnight for a few weeks. They have the run of the house now and one usually sleeps on top of my wardrobe and the other one is under my chin Grin
Expect a few scratches until they learn to retract their claws properly.

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